The Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog is a massive breed with a gorgeous shaggy coat and easy-going disposition. It has been in existence in Romania since the begging of time and still enjoys enormous popularity as a livestock guardian and hunter in its homeland. Furthermore this staunch and trainable breed easily copes with the role of a family pet.

History

The age of Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog is estimated by numerous centuries. It’s thought that its predecessors found their way to the Romanian region in the course of the Roman Empire migration. This impressive moloss dog was renowned for fierceness, bravery and powerful constitution. Thanks to these qualities the breed often served in the military force of mediaeval rulers. For instance it helped local residents to beat off the invasions of Romans. The unbelievable courage of this dog was imprinted in the Emperor Trajans Roman Column. This piece of ancient art demonstrates the engraved pictures of combating Dacs and Romans. The Dacs are being assisted by large and furry specimens of the Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog. Miorita, the celebrated Romanian poem ballad has lots of honourable mentions of this beautiful dog.

Nonetheless the breed was mainly used as a talented guardian that was equally proficient in defending various types of livestock and herdsmen’ homesteads and families. The Romanian forests are virtually teemed with bears, wolves and lynxes. For centuries the Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog has successfully fought off the attacks of these dangerous beasts and kept its subordinate animals safe from their claws and teeth. Furthermore its incredible strength and well-developed prey drive made it a great hunting dog that could trace and confront the game that is a few times larger than its size.

In its native land the Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog remains a popular working breed that specialises in guarding all types of human belongings. More and more its specimens are kept exclusively as companions and thrive in this position. Nevertheless it’s still reckoned as an exotic breed outside Romania. It got full recognition of the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) only in 2005.

Temperament

The most distinctive feature of the Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog is its docile yet fearless disposition so it can be turned into a very nice pet and family protector. Despite its inborn inclination for independent thinking this dog always respects authority of all of its masters and develops strong attachment to family kids. In fact it’s always willing to participate in their exuberant games and can tolerate a great deal of rough-housing from these little mischief-makers.

On the whole the Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog treats strange people warily although it’s by no means a vicious breed. Early obedience training and vast socialization are highly recommended if you want your dog to be polite with houseguests. It fulfils guarding duties with flying colours and will sacrifice its life to ensure the safety of its owners and their properties. At the same time this dog usually becomes a poor watcher as it got used to attack the enemy silently.

The Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog is generally alright with other dogs and welcomes a chance to have one or several permanent canine friends. Of course, it will react to any provocations from its counterparts with reciprocal aggression and should be always securely leashed while being walked. The breed won’t offend those individual pets (including cats) with which it was brought up since the puppyhood.

Health Problems

The breeders claim that this is a very healthy breed.

Grooming

The Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog doesn’t require vast amount of care. On the other hand, it’s a relatively time-consuming task to groom the puppy of this breed. Its fluffy and dense fur needs daily brushing to remain free of tangles. But as your pet grows older it’s acceptable to use less frequent brushing (couple of times per week are usually quite sufficient).

This dog should be bathed only if gets really dirty since it’s very difficult to properly dry its coat without a hair dryer. In other respects it should receive standard care that includes weekly teeth brushing, monthly nail clipping and systematic ear cleaning.

Training

The training of the Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog commonly becomes a breeze because of its complaisant character and outstanding intelligence. Be mindful though that this dog had to make lots of independent decisions in its work with the livestock and therefore it’s occasionally prone to wilful behaviour. Be firm yet fair in the communication with this breed and soon it will learn to perform very advanced commands.

It’s absolutely unacceptable to physically or verbally punish its specimen for the blunders since such training methods are ineffective and should be avoided at all costs. On the contrary it’s a great idea to stimulate the dogs’ interest with its favourite food and caress.

Exercise

The Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog is endowed with great strength and stamina and therefore requires a spacious yard to roam and play off-leash. It will be difficult to keep this dog in a small apartment since it will never be satisfied with a few daily strolls. It commonly enjoys all types of canine games and makes a wonderful companion for active families and individuals.

Make sure to provide your pet with enough outlets for both its body and mind otherwise it will acquire propensities for destructiveness and unmotivated barking.